Housed in the recently redeveloped Tatiara Civic Centre the Walkway Gallery offers an exciting and diverse program of exhibitions, with particular emphasis on artists that live and work in regional South Australia.

The gallery hosts national and state tourism programs and curate local exhibitions of topical and community interest, and offer an extensive workshop program throughout the year.

A visit to Bordertown would not be complete without spending some time at the faithfully restored Clayton Farm. Just 3 km from the town centre, the Bordertown and District Agriculture Museum has a recently restored and refurbished homestead and a comprehensive range of vintage farm machinery where you can experience farm life as it was more than a century ago when the original settlers - the Wiese family - first occupied the land.

Wiese's horse dip was built in 1931 by local landholders using timber from nearby buloke trees. Its main function was to control a parasitic itch in working horses (Clydesdales). Horses were walked into the dip and, due to the horses' size; the operators bucketed and sponged the solution over the horses to complete the task.

The wetlands of Poocher with its mature river red gums and abundant wildlife are the inspiration for many artists and a delight for locals and visitors alike.

Make sure you check out the very large hollowed tree affectionately known as “Pinkie’s Tree”. Located between the main runaway holes the tree once was the home for the Pinkie family.

Follow the track along the north-western side of the swamp to visit the “wash pool”. In the early days before wool was sold to England, the Aboriginal women first washed it in these various pools near station shearing sheds or depot sheds.

The overflow from Poocher Swamp flows westwards along a route which brings into operation a system of unique runaway holes which continue to recharge the underground water supplies. One of these is Scown’s Runaway Hole, 13km west of Bordertown off the Cannawigara Road. In wet winters this spectacular runaway hole can be viewed in action. Despite huge volumes of water pouring in, sometimes for weeks on end, the water level in the holes remains constant.

During the wet season, the population of bird life triples. However, there are many species found at Poocher Swamp amongst the native flora during the drier seasons.

Please note there are no public facilities, so please come prepared to be self-sufficient.

The famous Bordertown Wildlife Park was developed in 1968 and is situated just near the turn-off from the Dukes Highway at the eastern entrance of the town.

In the park are Western Grey Kangaroos and Dama Wallabies as well as a variety of birdlife. The park is famous though, for its mob of White Kangaroos that are a genetic strain of the Western Grey (they are not albinos).

In 1980 a big White Kangaroo was captured on a property near the South Australian / New South Wales border and bought to the park. He went on to become the founding father of the White Kangaroo mob. The first white joey was born in 1984, followed by a second two years later. From there the breeding program has taken off with around 50 being bred at the park over the years. A number have been sent to parks and reserves around the country, and today you can currently see around 10 in the Bordertown Park.

Visitors are able to drive or walk right around the 4.5 hectare park and its inhabitants are all quite easily observed through the fence.

Bob Hawke is one of Australia’s most iconic Prime Ministers – and he was born right here in 1929 while his father, Clem, was posted in Bordertown as the Congregational Minister.

Robert James Lee (Bob) Hawke was born on 9 December 1929 in Bordertown, South Australia. He was the younger of the two sons of Congregational minister Clem Hawke and Ellie (Lee) Hawke, a former teacher.

In 1939, after Bob Hawke’s 18-year-old brother Neil died, the family moved to Perth, Western Australia and settled in the suburb of West Leederville.

The Bob Hawke Gallery features a collection of photographs, newspaper clippings, cartoons, paintings and memorabilia acknowledging and celebrating Bordertown as the birth place of our former Prime Minister. The collection also includes a portrait of Bob Hawke by artist Michael Henwood.

Opening Hours

Monday to Friday 9 am - 5 pm

Saturday 9.30 am - 11.30 am

Sunday Closed

If you are interested in Bob Hawke, you may also want to visit Hawke House.

This house was built in 1885 as the National Bank office and manager's residence. In 1897 it was bought by the Congregational church and became their manse. In 1929 it was the birthplace of Robert James Lee Hawke, Prime Minister of Australia 1983-1991, son of Clement and Ellie Hawke, nee Lee.

Clement Hawke was Congregational Minister in Bordertown from 1928 until 1935, when the family moved to Maitland on the Yorke Peninsula, and subsequently to Perth. The house remained the manse until the Uniting Church was formed in 1977, when it was sold and became a private house. It is now known as Hawke House and houses the offices of community organisations.

If you are interested in Bob Hawke, you may also want to visit the Bob Hawke Gallery.